Steve Christie Shuffles Back to Buffalo

Published 8:00 pm, Thursday, December 12, 2002

Imagine if Steve Christie kicked a field goal in overtime in Buffalo on Sunday to give his San Diego Chargers a victory.

It would be poetic justice, eh?

Christie has already heard about that scenario.

"Well, it would be great and my friends have mentioned that to me: `I hope you get one,'" Christie said.

Sunday's game will be the Canadian-born Christie's first in Buffalo since the Bills released him in 2001. In nine seasons with the Bills, Christie forged a reputation as one of the NFL's best clutch kickers, and remains their leading scorer with 1,011 points.

Christie signed with the Chargers late last season to handle field goals and PATs after Wade Richey struggled. Richey was released two weeks ago.

While Christie would like to boot the Bills, he said he isn't bitter about them letting him go. He's got bigger reasons to want to win.

One is that the Chargers (8-5) are on the brink of blowing a playoff spot unless they win their final three games. And his next overtime field goal would be his 10th, giving him sole possession of the NFL record he shares with Jim Breech.

"To win the game would be great, that's the most important thing," Christie said.

And if he happened to kick an overtime field goal? "From a personal standpoint, I think that would be great because then I'd have the NFL record. But as far as doing it to Buffalo, yeah it'd be pretty nice, but I mean, I'm not dwelling on it now."

The 35-year-old Christie has already kicked two overtime field goals this year, providing the Chargers' only wins in their last six games. He connected from 40 yards with 4:11 left to beat the San Francisco 49ers 20-17 on Nov. 17, then hit from 27 yards with 3:01 left to beat Denver 30-27 on Dec. 1 and pull into a tie with Breech with his ninth OT field goal.

"I just feel very fortunate to be in a position to do it, to play for so long, to be in a situation where it can happen," Christie said. "I don't take it for granted. I've tried to work hard to be in that position, to be able to accomplish that."

Christie has made 314 of 400 career field-goals attempts, including 22 of 25 in the playoffs. The nine in overtime stand out.

"I like it," Christie said. "That's my bag, baby. That's what I do. Kicking, for me, that's the height of it all. I like going out there. I know there's pressure. Just to know you can finish a game off that way is neat."

His favorite OT kick was a 39-yarder to beat Indianapolis in 1996. The Bills were having a Canada Day promotion, and linebacker Mark Pike and punter Chris Mohr carried him off the field.

"That was cool," Christie said.

Two years ago against San Diego, Christie kicked a 29-yard field goal to tie the game. In overtime, the Bills got a break because Christie's 41-yard attempt bounced off the right upright. But it didn't count because the play had been called dead when Buffalo center Jerry Ostroski false-started. Christie then kicked a 46-yarder to beat the Chargers.

"That was all right, too," he said.

Christie is only 11-for-18 this year for his worst career percentage, 61.1, but his two OT kicks have been huge.

Darren Bennett, the Australian punter who doubles as the Chargers' holder, said Christie has taught him a lot about staying relaxed.

"Nothing fazes him," Bennett said. "That's what makes him clutch. "I lay that thing on its side and he still puts it through. Sort of eases your mind as the holder that he's going to get the job done."

That low-key approach is what helps Christie in overtime, Bennett said.

"You don't think about the situation of `Oh my God, it's overtime.' You go, `Let's just get this thing over with.' It's great to have a guy like Steve who's nice and solid who just goes out and kicks it."

Christie is also one of the most adaptable kickers around, Bennett said.

"He kicks in the sunshine, he kicks in the grass, he kicks in minus-20 degrees, and he's been doing it well for a long time," Bennett said. "I think a lot of that comes from just his attitude: `Well, who cares if it's cold, who cares if it's windy. Everyone's kicking in it, you've just got to go do the best you can.' "

Along those lines, Christie is trying to get his teammates ready for the Buffalo cold.